In 2013, the state of Illinois passed a law banning businesses engaged in the legal production and sale of medical marijuana from contributing to political campaigns through political action committees (PACs). The law similarly prohibited candidates from accepting contributions from businesses in the medical marijuana industry. Two Libertarian Party candidates sued the state over the provision on First Amendment grounds and won.
Judge John Z. Lee of the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Illinois found that the state failed to present substantive evidence signaling corruption in the medical marijuana industry. The court also concluded that Illinois failed to demonstrate that its complete ban of contributions is more proportionate to the government’s interest in preventing corruption in the industry, or the appearance of it, than the $10,000 dollar limit on contributions that already applied to all organizations. Judge Lee determined that the prohibition is invalid and is a violation of the First Amendment rights of the businesses’ freedom of speech and association. “[T]he First Amendment does not give the government free rein to selectively impose contribution restrictions in a manner that discriminates based on content or viewpoint.”
